Mentors

NACET offers it’s clients the opportunity to collaborate with some of the best people in their industry for information, advice and guidance.  These mentors have been selected based on their expertise and ability to guide others in their field.  Their variety of skill sets offer start ups and developing companies valuable information to assist their businesses’ continued growth.  NACET clients receive pro-bono time periodically from these mentors as one of the perks of being a NACET client.   To schedule a free session with one of our mentors, please contact NACET at 928-213-9234.

The following are members of NACET’s Mentors Group:

BC Engineering
Bryan Cooperrider
Expertise: Engineering Product Design
Bryan is the director of the Design4Practice program at NAU, where he teaches design classes at the freshman through senior level. He is a mechanical engineer/product designer and focuses on ideation and the design process. He has extensive experience in prototyping and manufacturing. He is also senior designer at BC Engineering, a small product design consulting firm in Flagstaff.

BC Engineering
Beth Cooperrider
Expertise: Engineering mechanics
Beth is a mechanical engineer/product designer that has been helping clients bring their products from prototype to market for 14 years. She has worked with clients to turn ideas into products, refine prototypes, or update existing products.  She has also consulted on a wide variety of consumer products, including medical devices, handheld electronics, sports equipment, turbine generators and wine devices. Beth is the founder of BC Engineering, a small design consulting firm in Flagstaff.

 
By Design Marketing, LLC.
Roxanne Engel, Ph.D., VP Scientific Affairs
Expertise: Strategic Business Planning, Strategic Marketing Planning, Biotech and Medical Commercialization Support, Developing a Funding Pitch, Board Composition, Technology Licensing and Sales Planning. www.ByDesignMarketing.com
A relative newcomer to Flagstaff, A.Z., Dr. Roxanne Engel heads the Flagstaff office of By Design Marketing, where her position as Vice President, Scientific Affairs, serves as the company’s liaison for all medical and technical clients.  She evaluates medical technologies, leads the process of translating technical information into market positions and consumer benefits, and coordinates research projects and product evaluations.  Dr. Engel also focuses on helping emerging companies become established and roll-out their new technologies into the marketplace faster and more efficiently. Finally, in her role, she helps connect entrepreneurs and small companies with business leaders and University technology transfer offices to bring new technologies into the marketplace for general use.

ClearSky Climate Solutions
Stephen Handler
Expertise: Carbon Offset Project Develpment
www.clearskyclimatesolutions.com
Stephen Handler is a Project Developer with ClearSky.  Stephen completed his MS at the University of Montana in 2007, focusing on Resource Conservation with a special emphasis in International Conservation and Development.  Mr. Handler’s expertise in carbon offset project development includes scoping project eligibility, identifying appropriate project methodologies and carbon standards, performing emissions reductions calculations, completing full Project Design Document analyses, and identifying options for project developing financing.  Stephen also performs customized Greenhouse Gas Assessments for companies interested to measure their carbon footprint, and develops Climate Action Plans for companies interested in reducing their emissions and reaching climate-neutral status.  Mr. Handler has worked with federal and non-governmental organizations in the United States and overseas, as well as local community groups and universities.  Stephen is fluent in English and Spanish, and dabbles in Pidgin.

Convince & Convert
Jason Baer
Expertise: Social media and online marketing strategy and coaching
Blog: www.convinceandconvert.com
Jason provides social media strategic planning, social media consulting (like blog and content advice, social media ROI analysis, and social media marketing campaigns), and social media training. He has worked with some of the biggest companies in the world, small PR firms, and everything in between. He emphasizes a “tools last, not first” methodology, and a relevant, hype-free style that doesn’t treat social media as all-powerful and infallible.
Twitter: @jaybaer

Eight Trails, LLC
Ed Tankersley
Expertise: Website Strategy, Planning, Design & Development, Website Usability Testing and Improvement, Website Conversion Improvement
www.EightTrails.com
Ed Tankersley of Eight Trails LLC consults to businesses to make their websites look better, sound better, and work better. Drawing on his 20+ years’ experience in marketing, management, and entrepreneurial positions, Ed provides a pragmatic combination of new media savvy and creative know-how on a foundation of solid marketing strategy. Ed’s experience includes 5 years as director of web design and online marketing and 10 years as creative director for Arizona advertising agencies. He has led the design and development of more than 50 sites.

Garrick Brooks
Garrick Brooks
Expertise: Information Technology
Garrick got his first computer at the age of 6 and built his first computer at age 12.  He has worked in Information Technology for over 10 years, all of which has been in Northern Arizona.  Mr. Brooks has done it all. His skills include basic tech, system administration and network operations with a speciality in (and a passion for) web programming.  His clients and past employers have included several local and/or regional ISPs, small/medium sized businesses and government. 

Global Patent Solutions
Kathryn Odland
Expertise: Intellectual Property, Patents, Patent Searching
www.globalpatentsolutions.com
Kathryn is a Registered Patent Agent with over 8 years of expertise in Intellectual Property Research & Consulting.  She previously worked as a Patent Examiner at The United States Patent and Trademark Office.  She is a co-founder of Global Patent Solutions, LLC (GPS), an Intellectual Property (IP) research and consulting firm that specializes in technical and patent research services that help clients with their invention concepts, lower costs, increase/discover revenue streams, and operate more efficiently. GPS specializes in gathering critical data used for filing patent applications, infringement and patent validity analysis, identifying licensing opportunities for existing IP, performing competitive analysis from an IP standpoint, and locating technology gaps/holes where IP is lacking. GPS currently serves small, medium and large Companies, IP Attorneys, Business Leaders, R&D Teams, Universities, Entrepreneurs and Inventors from all over the world.

GTMadvisors, LLC.
Jenny Epperson
Expertise: Sales & Marketing consultant
www.gtmadvisors.com
Ms. Epperson’s successful twenty-five year sales career spans multiple industries with experience as an entrepreneur and working in large and small corporate environments.   Experience in design/engineering/architecture, and graphic design industries proved an excellent foundation for Ms. Epperson to move into computer-aided design (CAD). Managing a service business and developing a successful small business program for the Houston Chamber of Commerce provided solid experience when she was hired to open a regional office on the Gulf coast for Cadsys, Inc., a value added reseller for CAD systems. Within two years, this office produced a majority of sales for the company, resulting in Ms. Epperson’s promotion to President.  Ms. Epperson joined Warren Winterbottom at Bentley Systems, Inc. as National Sales Manager for the Americas Operating Unit. During her tenure the she exceeded sales goals for sixteen consecutive quarters. Through coordinated teamwork with a sales organization that included resellers and direct sales persons located across the U.S., she earned top rating every year and closed seventy percent of overall sales for the company in 1997 and 1998.
 
Ms. Epperson brings knowledge and skills in sales recruitment, sales team development, overall selling skills and management of complex sales.  She is currently enjoying a second career as a figurative painter in Sedona, Arizona. Ms. Epperson also enjoys being a chef, and has studied with a variety of exceptional American chefs while working at the Sur La Table cooking school. She is an avid hiker and community volunteer.

Warren Winterbottom
Expertise: Sales & Marketing consultant
www.gtmadvisors.com

Hotventures
Rick Gibson
Expertise: Venture Capital
www.hotventures.com
Rick is an investor, advisor, resource and deal-guy, with a 34-year career building businesses. He founded and co-founded several successful technology companies and has advised over (75) others.  Co-founded ‘Knowledge Adventure’ which became the world’s largest CD-ROM edutainment company, was run by Vivendi-Universal and reached $400 million in revenues. Since 2000, Rick has served as Managing Director of HOTventures, a “mentor capital fund” for the Southwest U.S., which invests in and advises fast-growth companies, in Information Technology, BioSciences “light”, GreenTech and Media. Rick’s on the Executive Board and Screening Committee of the Desert Angels, the board of UA’s Arizona Center for Innovation (AZCI), the board of ASU Technopolis and an Entrepreneur in Residence, an instructor for ASU LaunchPad and LaunchPrep entrepreneurship programs, and a mentor for ASU TechBA. He’s on the Executive Committee and Screening Committee for the Invest Southwest Capital Conference, the board of the NACET incubator (Northern Arizona Center for Emerging Technologies), the management committee of the Northern Arizona Angels, a judge for Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Awards, and on the Angel Capital Association’s National Collaboration Committee.

Intellectual Energy, LLC
Ron Epperson, CLP, President
Expertise: Intellectual Property
President and CEO of Intellectual Energy, LLC. Intellectual Energy LLC is a boutique intellectual property consulting firm that focuses on helping clients commercialize their inventions and technology with a special focus on assisting renewable energy and clean tech companies with IP strategy, licensing, valuation and business planning. Intellectual Energy applies proven and effective processes to help you determine what your technology is worth, how to bring it to market, and how to protect it from infringers and counterfeiters.

Ron Epperson, CLP, founded Intellectual Energy in March 2008.  Ron has over 29 years experience in industry and as a consultant in the development, commercialization, valuation, licensing and defense of intellectual property. Ron served as a licensing director for the Chemicals business of Royal Dutch Shell, and also was the national leader for intellectual property consulting for two major accounting and consulting firms (Ernst & Young LLP and Grant Thornton LLP) and has worked with intellectual property across a wide range of industries, including biotech, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, diagnostics, aerospace, energy, semiconductors, consumer products, telecommunications, computer hardware and software, e commerce and Web 2.0. Ron has worked globally with clients ranging from early stage start ups to universities to Fortune 100 companies. Ron recently earned the Certified Licensing Professional designation for his experience and leadership within the licensing profession. He is one of only six people in Arizona currently holding this designation.

Jeff Ross
Jeff Ross
Expertise: Management
Jeff has worked in big box retail management for 25 years, 8 years in newspaper management and 4 years owning a flooring company.  He developed the ability to learn from successes and mistakes which made it easier to succeed in each new career field. General business management has basics that flow from business to business like; developing and following business plans and budgets, learning to work with your employees in today’s work environment, time management, physical plant maintenance, advertising, and merchandising. One of the best things he learned through the years is that there are other people that may know more than you do in fields like accounting, legal issues and human resources. He is currently working in residential real estate and enjoys mentoring others regarding management issues.

Kristin Keyes
Kristin Keyes
Expertise: Corporate and marketing communications and public relations strategy development and implementation for emerging technology companies

Kristin has been developing and implementing integrated corporate and marketing communications strategies for emerging technology companies for more than 20 years. She loves helping companies find effective ways to communicate what they do to the people who would want to know. She has helped many small emerging technology companies successfully gain exposure and recognition to support growth through IPOs and acquisitions.

Missing Frame Photography
Michael Bielecki
Expertise: Photography & Design
www.missingframephotography.com
Michael Bielecki was born and raised in Flagstaff, Arizona.  He studied Photography, Advertising and Journalism and Northern Arizona University which has helped to give him the necessary skills to capture the world, exactly as it happens in front of him.  Years of experience in photographing portraits, weddings, bands, artists and fashion, as well as, landscape and product shots, has strengthened his eye for unique and lasting imagery through the lens.  Comprehensive knowledge in digital manipulation has given him the ability to create individual works of art in each and every image.

Renee Moore Public Relations
Renee Moore
Expertise: Public Relations
Moore has more than 15 years of experience in public relations, marketing communications and internal communications in corporate, agency and freelance environments.  Moore has handled public relations and communications for a variety of industries such as entertainment, food and beverage, media, retail, business-to-business and education.  She specializes in media relations and developing and executing special events and promotions.

Prior to her starting Renee Moore Public Relations, she returned to Barclay Communications (a former employer) as a senior account executive, Moore was also the owner of Moxie Group Public Relations and Communications where she handled public relations, special events and communications for clients such as the Community of Anthem, Ariz., Tutor Time Childcare and Learning Centers and Cavalia – a grand scale show from the founders of Cirque du Soleil.

Renee began her career as marketing communication manager for Houston’s Restaurants, Inc., as part of the research and development team handling public relations, advertising, menu and recipe coordination and recipe cost analysis for a group of more than 40 restaurants nationwide.  She then moved to the agency side of public relations where she has handled a wide-range of projects for clients such as the Phoenix Coyotes, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Phoenix, Feld Entertainment (Ringling Bros. & Barnum and Bailey, Disney on Ice), Arizona Highways Magazine, Hickman’s Family Farms, Arizona Radon Busters and Over Easy breakfast restaurants.

On Target Consultants
Chuck Bolotin
Expertise: “Go to market” strategy and execution, revenue acceleration, due diligence, partnering and asset sales.
www.OnTargetConsultants.com
Chuck founded, funded, ran and sold two companies.  In addition, he has led close to a dozen other product introductions.  Chuck is an expert in defining product specifications, early market introduction and penetration strategies, marketing and sales, and in working with investors.  Additional information can be found on Chuck at the web sites of On Target Consultants (http://www.ontargetconsultants.com/) and Arch Partners  (http://www.archpartnersllc.com/).

Polaris
Gary Enzweiler,MBA, MHA
Expertise: Medical technologies
Gary J. Enzweiler is founder and President of Polaris Health Care Solutions, LLC., an information technology consulting firm specializing in the health care industry and serving clients nation-wide.  Gary founded 3X HealthCare Solutions Group, a health care specific information technology firm serving providers, payors, and other health care related organizations primarily in the mid-west.  In 1996, Gary co-founded PatientCare Dynamics, a provider of technology-based patient care support systems and services that assisted health care professionals in the delivery of timely, high quality, and cost-efficient care and information to health care consumers.  Gary began his business career in 1988 with IBM as a Marketing Representative,  advancing to Senior Health Industry Client Specialist responsible for the marketing and sales of IBM related hardware, software, and services throughout the Northern Kentucky, Cincinnati, and Dayton areas.

In addition to his extensive healthcare and information technology experience, Gary was founder and Managing Partner of Northern Kentucky Professional Baseball, LTD., and organization dedicated to establishing professional minor league baseball in the greater Northern Kentucky area.  Gary earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics, Finance, and Mathematics from Northern Kentucky University and a Master of Business Administration and a Master of Health Services Administration degree.

Snell and Wilmer
Angela Perez
Expertise: Business Law
www.swlaw.com
Angela Perez’s practice is concentrated in business and finance, focusing on venture capital and private equity, mergers and acquisitions, regulatory compliance, and commercial agreements. Her experience includes representation of clients in various industries, including bioscience, medical research, health care, OTC drugs and pharmaceuticals, and product manufacturing. Angela’s experience also includes representation of clients at various stages of the company life cycle, from start-up to exit.  Angela regularly drafts and advises clients with respect to a myriad of commercial agreements, including those that are generally applicable across different industries such as confidentiality, employment, severance, employee equity incentive awards, partnership, support services, management services and licensing; as well as those that apply to specific industries such as clinical trial, manufacturing, co-packing, maintenance and repair, federal sub-contracts, and management services.  She represents clients ranging from emerging growth companies and those seeking venture capital to large publicly held corporations.  Angela directs Snell & Wilmer’s Bioscience & Health Care Industry Group.

The BelleWether Group
Trish Rensink
Expertise: Organizational Development and Strategic Planning
www.bellewethergroup.com
Trish Rensink has spent 20 years helping people and organizations set challenging goals, and then achieving them with extraordinary results.  She has held leadership and change agent positions with national organizations such as TDS Telecom and AAA, and regional organizations such as Northern Arizona University.  She is accomplished in motivating people, training and development, communications, interpersonal skills, problem solving and management.   She has successfully worked with executives and employees at all levels of organizations.  She has presented at national conferences, been active in the American Society of Training and Development, and is currently a member of the Flagstaff Chamber of Commerce, Flagstaff Independent Business Alliance, Flagstaff Arts and Business Alliance, and Flagstaff Rotary Chapter.

The BelleWether Group
Jamey Hasapis
Expertise: Organizational Development and Strategic Planning
www.bellewethergroup.com
Jamey Hasapis has over 20 years developing and leading service-oriented teams to excellence. Experienced in organizational development, change and talent management, he has held leadership positions with national and local organizations such as H&R Block, Washington Mutual Bank, LeadingWay Knowledge Systems, the Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra and the Coconino County Juvenile Court System. He is adept in communications, interpersonal skills, creative problem solving, training and development, coaching and management. He is experienced in working with executives and associates of all levels.  Jamey is a sought after presenter and facilitator, has been active in the American Society of Training and Development, and is a member of the Downtown Business Alliance, the Flagstaff Arts and Business Alliance, the Flagstaff Independent Business Alliance, and the Flagstaff Chamber of Commerce. He currently serves as a commissioner in the Flagstaff City Tourism Commission and sits on the Flagstaff Leadership Program board of directors.

Trailhead Studio
Trevor Roberson
Expertise: Art and Graphic Design
www.trailheadstudio.com
Trailhead Studio is a successful husband-wife marketing and design team based out of both Midcoast Maine and Northern Arizona. Kathy Maloney and Trevor Roberson have more than twenty years of combined experience in design, marketing and business management. Trevor has been a Senior Designer and Illustrator for regional and national publications including Flagstaff Live, Mountain Living magazine (Arizona), Sedona Magazine, Soccer Magazine and Shooting Sportsman. He was also Art Director for the nationally distributed Fly Rod & Reel magazine for several years. Whether you need a web page, a logo or brochure design, or an entire branding campaign, Trailhead will bring a wealth of creative ideas and practical experience to your project. Our strong design sense and savvy marketing ideas can be applied to any budget, large or small.  Creating an effective brand or look that accurately represents your business can be a daunting task. Let Trailhead Studio guide you through the process and take you to the next level.

Wells Fargo
Craig Snyder
Expertise: Banking
www.wellsfargo.com
The Senior Business Relationship Manager at Wells Fargo Bank, Mr. Snyder has spent over 25 years in the banking industry. He has a BS in Mathematics from U.C. Davis and an MBA from Colorado State University. This 2002 member of the National Business School Honors Society has served on the Board of Cedar City’s Music Arts and Treasurer of the Southern Utah chapter of the National Risk Management Association.

West, Christensen PC
Kevin D. West, CPA
Expertise: Small business financial management, accounting practices, tax-related business structures, and CFO management
www.nazcpa.com
Kevin has over 25 years of accounting and financial business experience. He has worked with small to medium sized companies in various executive financial positions in public accounting and private industry. He brings to his clients a broad range of skills and experience in tax planning and compliance, business valuation, business improvement initiatives, internal control design, cash management and capital financing. Prior to forming West Christensen, PC, Kevin founded CFO Solutions, LLC, a consulting firm specializing in providing CFO assistance to small and medium sized companies in the Phoenix area. Kevin has also held the position of Treasurer or Corporate Controller of several Arizona public companies. Kevin’s earlier assignments included working as a financial analyst for an Arizona financial advisory firm. Kevin began his career as an auditor and tax specialist for KPMG in Phoenix, Arizona. He holds a Masters degree in Accountancy from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. His affiliations include the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Arizona Society of Certified Public Accountants, and Rotary International. He is a past member of the University of Phoenix faculty lecturing on accounting and finance. Kevin is also fluent in Spanish. Kevin, Ronda and their 7 children enjoy their mountain home, their horses and all the great outdoor activities available in Northern, Arizona. They are actively involved in their church and schools in the Flagstaff, Arizona area.